By Grace Q. Bryant
Speaker Fonati Koffa has denounced what he calls an egregious abuse of power, condemning the withholding of salaries and benefits for lawmakers and their staff in the wake of the controversial removal of the Speaker.
It can be recalled that members of the “Majority Bloc”, meeting in the Joint Chamber of the Legislature suspended seven lawmakers for 30 session days, citing “misconduct.”
The suspended representatives include Frank Saah Foko (District 9, Montserrado County), Eugene Kollie (District 3, Montserrado County), Zinnah Normah (District 3, Lofa County), and Alex Noah (District 3, Gbarpolu County), Marvin Cole (Bong County District 3), Abu Kamara (Montserrado County District 15), and Edward Papay Flomo (Montserrado County District 13).
During the suspension period, the affected lawmakers will forfeit their salaries and benefits for December, January, and February. Additionally, the House warned that their March salaries and benefits could be redirected to government coffers if deemed necessary.
The “Majority Bloc” also hinted at further disciplinary action. Presiding officer Richard Nagbe Koon suggested that previously suspended lawmakers could face expulsion in January for violating the bloc’s mandate to stay away from the Capitol Building.
In a statement on his Facebook page, Speaker Koffa questioned the morality and legality of the actions taken by the majority faction in the Legislature. “When they were illegally removing the Speaker, many in the political class said, ‘It’s a numbers game; leave the legality, it’s political, move on.”
He added, “Now they have illegally seized the salaries and benefits of their colleagues and staff during the Christmas season. Is this the numbers game too?”
Speaker Koffa framed the issue as an attack on the livelihoods of innocent families.
“Scores of families are without Christmas because of this numbers game, whose rules are set by the ‘majority’. Is this the country we want?” He said.
Koffa warned of the dangers of complacency and unchecked power. “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me,” he recited.
He emphasized the moral imperative to confront injustice at all levels.
